The 13th Floor Elevators Reunite for First Concert in Decades

Roky Erickson has experienced something of a comeback in recent years, and now the singer-guitarist is getting his old garage-psych band the 13th Floor Elevators back together for their first show in well over 40 years.

The 13th Floor Elevators have been added to the lineup of Levitation, a festival presented by the folks at Austin Psych Fest. The event is taking place from May 8 to 10 in the band's hometown of Austin.

The group's appearance is being billed as a "50th year anniversary reunion," since they first formed back in 1965 (and released their final album in 1969). The band included a song called "I've Got Levitation" on their 1967 album Easter Everywhere, and this apparently provided the inspiration for Levitation festival's name.

The lineup at this gig will feature Erickson, bassist Ronnie Leatherman, drummer John Ike Walton and jug player/lyricist Tommy Hall. In an interview with the Austin Chronicle, Hall admitted that he doesn't play the jug anymore, but will practice and hopefully get his skills back.

"When we we're going on we weren't very appreciated, but now the young people dig us," Hall said. "With the younger generations' knowledge and their use of weed for good purposes, they understand the information. Once we have these ideas, it should change us physically."

We're not yet sure if this is a one-off, or if there will be more gigs. There are different spin-offs of the Levitation festival, including this June's Levitation Vancouver. That Canadian event hasn't yet announced its lineup, so fingers crossed?